I have 3 locations I’d like to use the Cam Plus service at. Can I put all the cameras on one Unlimited plan?(cheaper this way)
Welcome to the Wyze User Community Forum @Mcspin! 
Absolutely!
Cam Plus subscriptions are $19.99 per year per cam.
Cam Plus Unlimited covers 99 cams and is $99 annually.
That makes Cam Plus Unlimited the best option if you have more than 5 cams or you plan to expand there.
You can install your cams to your account anywhere in the world you like, so long as they have constant WiFi and you have access to log into the WiFi. You do have to physically be at the location and logged into that network with your app to install them. But, once installed, you and your phone can go anywhere and still access them.
Great.
Also, at one location, I have wifi through a phone hotspot. Is Cam Plus able to handle that?
Yes. The cams rarely care where the WiFi comes from so long as you have login credentials. There are some brands of routers that don’t like to play nice, but it is rare.
If you have a limited data plan though, you need to be aware that the cam will be uploading full length video events to the cloud whenever motion is detected, depending on your settings, and some users on cellular WiFi have run into data cap issues.
Does this app allow changing recording quality settings? Does it have an option for scheduled recording times?
Most of the cams are similar in their basic capabilities, however they do have some differences in their features, settings, and UI.
Each cam can be modified to record to the cloud in Full HD, SD, or 360p video.
Each cam has Motion Sensitivity settings and a Detection Zone setting so that you can limit the number of motion activation s and potential length of each uploaded video.
Some cams have the capability to set scheduled recording times in the cam settings, though most of the newer models do not. Most cams are plug powered, some are battery powered. This vastly changes their behavior and feature capabilities.
The App does have the capability to set a “Rule”, much like an Alexa Routine or IFTTT Applet, that can turn Motion Detection on and off for individual cams or groups of cams during set hours. This will also limit the number of uploads.
Most cams have an SD Card slot that can record all video continuously or just motion events. I run my V3 Cam SD recording 24\7 continuous in full HD on 256GB High Endurance SD Cards and get about 28 days. All SD footage is available to be streamed from the cam to the app at any time.
Just FYI, Wyze’s website says Cam Plus Unlimited applies to a single location:
Hey, people can do whatever they want. I just give them the information they are asking for when I know it.
It doesn’t take much to determine different locations, think IP address. Just ask those sharing streaming passwords.
Be aware of something that may or may not be of use here. If a rogue police dept warrant is pulled for camera footage of any camera it will go by the account the camera is connected to.
Example of a real life situation:
A crime is committed outside of your business. The cops ask for any footage that may show said crime. You look through the footage and see nothing was caught by your cameras. They dont believe you. They then ask to see the camera footage and you reply no. They get a warrant for all cameras linked to that account. That same account is also shared with your home cameras. Camera surrounding and inside your home (which i never understand why people put them inside but oh well). They will now have any and all footage of every camera and it will all be provided without you knowing. In this particular example the gentleman had a camera in his bedroom.
I actually have my own real-life situations of this scenario. A crime was committed just outside my business and the police came asking for footage. (We have outside cameras that are visible and recording to a DVR). I simply told them that the cameras are pointed in a different direction than what they wanted and they left. Another time, same situation, I told them the cameras weren’t recording and they left. Give them a reason and not just a no and you’re not likely to have a problem. Though, I agree, cameras in the bedroom make little sense. I may put one inside the house, simply to get alerts of fire alarms or carbon monoxide problems, but it’s likely to point down a hallway.
Just be careful not to lie…if they don’t believe you and issue a warrant anyway and see that you lied to them, now you could potentially be facing felony obstruction charges for lying instead of just exercising your rights. They may or may not lose in the end (98% of people take a plea deal though), but the legal fees and potential incapacitation in jail while fighting it would really suck.
If someone is worried about cops viewing your video at some point (such as a bedroom), then the best course of action is to turn off cloud recording, use RTSP through docker Wyze bridge or another option, record all video onto an encrypted local hard drive/NAS.
Now if they want your video, they 100% need your cooperation and need to ask you nicely and be respectful. There is no other way they are ever getting it. They can issue a warrant to the company but they don’t have it. They can issue a warrant to you and even confiscate the hard drive, but it’s encrypted with a password in your head that has has 5th amendment claims (there are some considerations on this depending on which appeals district you live in, but my district has ruled that passwords in your head fall under the 5th amendment and cannot be coerced from you).
Or… The easiest solution: Don’t put cameras anywhere that could be compromising for you.
I didn’t lie and if they insisted, I would have allowed it. It is just my belief that they aren’t expecting trouble from me, and aren’t going to insist unless they have a good reason to disbelieve me. Besides, even if I did like, they’d have a hard time proving it wasn’t just a mistake, or misunderstanding. It’s not like they are a court of law and I’m under oath when they request permission.
Appologies, my comment was intended for people in general, not specifically meaning to imply that I am saying that you lied in your case or that you did anything wrong. Obviously I don’t have any of that information, I wouldn’t know. I didn’t intend to imply anything about your situation specifically, just warning people in general not to draw the wrong conclusion for themselves about what they could do. Obviously, if stating that is a true statement, then this is an excellent suggestion that will help reduce the chance of them requesting a warrant. On the other hand, if they look at where the camera is pointed and see that a person is obviously lying because it is obviously pointed exactly where they want, then that is another matter. (Again, not implying any of that relates to your situation, just warning people in general).
Yeah, laws vary a lot in each state. Most of them do have laws that make it at least a misdemeanor to provide false or misleading information to a peace officer though. While I did work for years in a law firm as a legal assistant, IANAL, and each state can have differences, but in general, the main concern is that an officer doesn’t have to prove that you made a mistake or had a misunderstanding on anything. They can charge and arrest a person under their discretion because THEY believe or perceive that you lied or misled them. That doesn’t mean the person will definitely be convicted, but they do have the discretion to arrest you anyway under their interpretation and discretion. Then, a prosecutor collects the information from the officer and uses their discretion whether they officially charge you or drop it (either way the arrest for it may remain on your record…depending on state laws for how to deal with that…which sucks). If the prosecutor agrees with the officer and does official charges for false information or misleading information, then come the lawyer fees. By the end, even if you’re “right” and the judge agrees that it was more likely a mistake, than intentional, you may be out thousands of dollars in legal fees, and for some people, lost wages if they didn’t post bail. A person may ultimately prove they are “Right” by the end of the trial, but in my experience working for a law firm, it can be a big hassle to prove you’re right sometimes, and it might still be stuck on your record and affect you depending on your future aspirations or needs. It’s not always fair…
Again, I’m not suggesting any of that can or ever will apply to you, I was just extending the conversation in general to anyone who MIGHT think about lying to the cops just to have them “go away”…make sure you know what you could be getting yourself into. Otherwise, it’s an excellent way to get them to drop the subject.
Another thing you can do is set your cameras up on a recording schedule with a detection zone as well, and then even if they are pointing in the direction they want, you have plausible reason to honestly tell the officer, “Sorry, my cameras are set to record on a schedule and have a detection zone setup to only record things that happen on my property, so my videos won’t be of any use to you for this since it didn’t occur on my property, etc. I hope you can figure out another option.” Something like that is totally honest and believable.
That’s basically how I set mine up.
Yes, I understand all that and of course, anyone can bring a lawsuit at any time for any reason, but what I’m trying to get across is that they are coming to me for help and as long as I appear to cooperate and am polite, they are very unlikely to push the issue, even if what I say happens to not be accurate.
Exactly my point on my post. Ring has handed over tons of user footage without the owner knowing and admits to it with pride. The password being protected by the consitution is another great point. Thats why I dont use biometrics for my phone. By law thats your body and they can force you to unlock if arrested. With a password its knowledge and they cant force anything. Also, thanks for laying out a better way to store the footage from our cameras. Note taken.